Food, Fun and More to See in Paris This Fashion Week

Lily Templeton, Rhonda Richford and Jennifer Weil
·5 min read

Forget the cold — Paris is nothing but cool this winter, with a plethora of new fashion boutiques, restaurants and art exhibitions to take in. Here are some of the most recent.

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Berlin-based jewelry label Avgvst teamed up with Crosby Studios’ Harry Nuriev for an immersive pop-up in the Palais-Royal gardens until March 28. In the sleek, silver-walled space centered around a fountain is the brand’s latest collection, available for preorder and inspired by 16th-century French tapestries, cave paintings, Jean-Michel Basquiat and legendary night club Berghain.

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Japanese artist Tokujin Yoshioka transformed a former radio station into a sleek industrial space for Issey Miyake’s new flagship. The traditional Parisian facade was preserved, while the interior packs a sunny citrus punch with an orange-hued anodized aluminum wall. From fragrance to plenty of pleats and all the brand’s lines in between, it’s an immersive Issey world.

Heritage menswear house Cifonelli has relocated its flagship to the former couture quarters of Guy Laroche. The five-story building brings lines of the 140-year-old brand together under one roof, with ready-to-wear and made-to-measure available in the Elliot Barnes-designed store. The doors of the minimalist space will officially open during Paris Fashion Week. Race on over — Cifonelli is also the official tailor of Le Mans for the third year running.

For the first time retailing outside of Japan, heritage kimono house Yamato has opened a pop-up in the Marais. The century-old brand, now helmed by the founder’s great grandson, is showcasing its two contemporary lines, the menswear label Y. & Sons and womenswear label Kimono by Nadeshiko. The minimalist space will be open until June 30. — Rhonda Richford and Lily Templeton

Avgvst x Crosby Studios, until March 28
16-17 Galerie de Montpensier, 75001

Issey Miyake
28 Rue François 1er, 75008
Tel.: +33 1 48 87 01 86

Cifonelli
35 Rue François 1er, 75008
Tel.: +33 1 42 61 50 34

Yamato, until June 30
1-3 Place de Thorigny, 75003

Savor

At 3 Rue Royale, Maxim’s has reopened, restored to its Belle Epoque glory thanks to a feather-light overhaul signed by Cordélia de Castellane, artistic adviser of new operator Paris Society; a menu rife with hyper-traditional French fare ranging from soups named after royal mistresses or former presidents to frogs’ legs, and a bar with live music open until the wee hours.

Halo is no mere restaurant: This 18th-century townhouse with an Eiffel-era glass roof is also home to a concept store with a focus on circularity and a private table. Dished up here is the cuisine of Victor Blanchet, a rising star whose inspiration stretches from the Basque country to the Mediterranean Coast.

Also worth a visit: L’Envol atop the Philarmonie de Paris, with its menu signed by Michelin-starred and sustainability-minded chef Thibaut Spiwack. — L.T.

Maxim’s de Paris
3 Rue Royale, 75008
Monday to Sunday, noon to 2:30 p.m., 7 to 11 p.m. Bar: 7 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Tel.: +33 1 42 65 27 94

Halo
12 Rue Saint-Sauveur, 75002
Tuesday to Saturday, noon to 3 p.m., 7 p.m. to 2 a.m.

L’Envol
221 Avenue Jean Jaurès, 75019
Wednesday to Saturday, 6:30 to 11:15 p.m.

Sip

Paging all coffee lovers! The Left Bank now boasts Paris’ permanent outpost of Ralph’s Coffee, with its organic house blend and sweet treats, such as Ralph’s Brownie, and its famous carrot cake. Meanwhile, on the Right Bank, a queue stretching half a block heralds the Cédric Grolet Café. This is the third address of the “It” pastry chef and where to find the massive pizza-sized cookies that have been making the rounds on Instagram. — L.T.

Ralph’s Coffee Paris
173 Boulevard Saint Germain, 75006 
Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Cédric Grolet Café
6 Rue Danielle Casanova, 75001
Wednesday to Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Stay

Just a stone’s throw from the Porte de Versailles exhibition center, the 43-room Kraft Hôtel is influenced by the notion of artistic works-in-progress. Its 24-hour luggage facilities and reception make this new address by the Machefert hospitality group a natural fit for the fashion flock.

For those wanting Haussmannian grandeur blended with a dash of Art Deco and ’70s flair, there’s the 39-room Hôtel Florida that was once frequented by Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald. It is home to Nepita, the Mediterranean-inflected restaurant helmed by Michelin-starred chef Amandine Chaignot. — L.T.

Kraft Hôtel
37 Rue du Hameau, 75015
Tel.: +33 1 44 19 62 82

Hôtel Florida
12 Boulevard Malesherbes, 75008 
Tel.: +33 1 42 65 72 06

Show

Another Parisian icon given a makeover is the Lido, now christened Lido2Paris. Bought by the Accor hospitality group, the famous cabaret on the Champs-Élysées has been entirely reimagined by French designer Alexis Mabille and architect Philippe Pumain. It is now showing “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” until April. — L.T.

Lido2Paris
116 Avenue des Champs-Élysées, 75008
Tel.: +33 1 53 33 45 50

Scent

Perfumer, filmmaker and world wanderer Rami Mekdachi launched his Lola James Harper label a decade ago. Now the fragrances and candles with names such as “The Surf Shop in San Diego” and “The Fun Fair of Les Tuileries,” all meant to evoke memories of time and place, have a permanent home in Paris. For the opening, Mekdachi collaborated with K-pop star Joshua Hong on a scent recreating the Han River in Seoul. Next up will be the Chicago studio of The Smashing Pumpkins. Prints from his and daughter Lili Mekdachi’s travel series cover the walls, along with books documenting their retro-tinged road trips across the United States.

Walking-distance from there, French niche fragrance brand BDK just opened the doors of its first freestanding boutique, on Rue Saint-Honoré. That marks the first time its olfactive universe is contained under one roof. To celebrate the two-story, 645-square-foot streamlined shop, founder David Benedek created a perfume called 312 Saint-Honoré. — Jennifer Weil and R.R.

Lola James Harper
78 Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 75001

BDK Parfums
312 Rue Saint-Honoré, 75001 
Tel.: +33 1 88 61 35 17

See

Paris is bustling with new art exhibitions opening just in time for Paris Fashion Week. At the Maison Européene de la Photographie is “Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn — Fashion Icon,” with almost 150 vintage fashion photographs by the likes of Irving Penn and Horst P. Horst, taken between 1935 and 1955, from the model’s collection.

“Annie Leibovitz x Ikea” is part of the home furnishing giant’s Ikea+ project inspired by its study showing that 48 percent of people around the world do not feel their home life is represented in the media. The final 25 images of Ikea’s Artist in Residence collaboration with Leibovitz will take over a showroom at 28 Rue de Lappe.

Edward Enninful has curated an exhibition of Robert Mapplethorpe’s fashion photography, and portraits, nude and still-life shots at the Thaddaeus Ropac gallery. — J.W.

“Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn – Fashion Icon,” Feb. 28 to May 26
Maison Européene de la Photographie
5-7 Rue de Fourcy, 75004
Tel.: +33 1 44 78 75 00

“Annie Leibovitz x Ikea,” Feb. 29 to March 3
28 Rue de Lappe, 75011

“Robert Mapplethorpe,” curated by Edward Enninful, March 2 to April 6
Thaddaeus Ropac
7 Rue Debelleyme, 75003
Tel.: +33 1 42 72 99 00

Launch Gallery: The Paris Scene: What Do In the City of Light

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